Angela's Ashes

I recently read Angela’s Ashes for my high school AP Language Class. It was a very depressing and sad novel, but interesting all the same. The following is a section of a critique I wrote about it….

Ireland has a long and treacherous history. She has battled England for control of her borders and people, and she has suffered severely internally during the Irish Potato Famine. Ireland is just beginning to recover from its hardships when Frank McCourt brings his past to life in his memoir, Angela’s Ashes. He goes into great detail to describe his life as a poor, impoverished, Irish Catholic boy. McCourt uses many elements of style, variation, and some flaws in his writing to paint a picture of himself as a child.

Little Frankie McCourt was born during a sad time when there was not enough food and wealth to go around. His family received dole money and was forced to stand in line at the local charity, while his father drank away any money they ever earned. Throughout childhood, he experienced many hardships and difficulties, but towards the end of the memoir, he saves enough money to buy a boat fare to America in order to make a new life for him and start over.

A good majority of readers have probably read a sad, depressing, heart wrenching novel at one time or another, but probably only a few people have read a book quite like this one. It is a rare and wonderful gift that McCourt has chosen to share her story with the world. The original purpose of this memoir was to educate the world about the meaning of tolerance and perseverance. This is a story about triumph over poverty, self worth, desire, and knowledge. In the first chapter, McCourt looks back onto his early years, “When I look back on my childhood I wonder how I survived at all. It was a miserable childhood: the happy childhood is hardly worth your while”(McCourt, 1). McCourt realizes that the first years of his life were very difficult. He wanted to explain with his novel that there could be success, even in the most depressing situations. Nobody thought it was possible for McCourt to claw his way out of poverty, yet he did. Miracles do happen with hard work, dedication and perseverance.

McCourt had a rough childhood, yet he grew up, went to America, and took his life into his own hands in order to achieve happiness. He intended his audience to read his story and to understand that life is completely in the hands of its beholder. His intended audience was people that think they have it bad. He aimed to explain that people who experienced hardships one after another, after another could still succeed in life. McCourt explains, “Worse than the ordinary miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood”(1). Readers are supposed to understand that success and achievement are still possible in an impoverished difficult life.